WASHINGTON – In every season since 2003, one player on the Georgetown University football team carries the tradition and the legacy of a fallen brother on his shoulders. The Hoyas have announced that graduate student wide receiver
Tiy Reed has been selected as the 19th recipient of the No. 35 Joe Eacobacci Memorial Jersey for the 2023 campaign.
The student-athletes chosen to wear the No. 35 jersey have been selected based on both on-field performance and a combination of skills and intangibles that have cemented Eacobacci's place in Georgetown football history.
"It has been an honor to be a small part of this tradition over my career at Georgetown," said Head Coach
Rob Sgarlata. "This was the most difficult year with the candidates we had within our program to select the one player to represent the number 35 for the 2023 season.
Tiy Reed embodies all three principles of our program: 4 for 40, SISU and men for others. He has had an incredible journey here in the classroom and on the field and now serves as one of the biggest mentors for our young guys and our transfers coming in. I am looking forward to his season on and off the field. We are honored to have him follow the long line of incredible people who have represented the number 35 in memory of Joe Eacobacci.
Tiy Reed will be someone that the program is going to be proud of today, tomorrow and throughout his entire life."
Reed is now the third wide receiver to wear the No. 35 jersey alongside Robert Lane (2009) and Brandon Williams (2018).
"It is an honor and it means alot to be in a position to lead this team and to be an anchor for this program," said Reed. " I don't take this responsibility lightly. Coming here in 2019 I understood the potential that this program had and I wanted to stick with it. I know what we can become and what we are about to accomplish. That is why I decided to come here for my fifth year with no hesitation. I knew this was where I wanted to be, I wanted to be with you guys. I want nothing more than to help lead this team and do whatever it takes."
The Tennessee native has played in 17 games on the Hilltop, racking up 130 all purpose yards, including 99 kick return yards. Reed has also received multiple athletic department awards including the People for Other Award in 2023 for exhibiting outstanding service to the community and the Courage Award in 2022 for exhibiting perseverance and strength in the face of adversity.
On September 11, 2001 the Georgetown community lost former Hoya football standout Eacobacci to the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center. A 1996 graduate of the College of Arts and Sciences, he was an energy trader for the investment firm Cantor Fitzgerald on the 105th floor of the North Tower. Since the 2003 season, the No. 35 has been awarded as a living memorial to the spirit and memory of Joey.
